Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir refused to meet with the U.S. special envoy last month because he was angry about U.S. sanctions imposed against his country over Darfur, the diplomat said.The special envoy, Andrew Natsios, said in an interview on Thursday with Washington's Holocaust Memorial Museum that Bashir had canceled the meeting because of an executive order signed by President George W. Bush that imposed new sanctions. "I did not meet with him and we were told one of the reasons was the executive order and the new legislation the president signed on this, so it's having its effect," said Natsios, according to a transcript of his remarks. "If it was not annoying them, I think they would have certainly have had the meeting," he said in the interview, done as part of the museum's "Voices on Genocide Prevention" series. ... http://abcnews.go.com

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Friday praised leaders at the 16th annual Iberoamerican summit for resolving to make progress on growing illegal immigration in an increasingly mobile world community. At an opening ceremony of the 22-nation summit, Annan told the leaders that there are an estimated 26 million Latin American immigrants, constituting 13 percent of people worldwide crossing borders to flee poverty for opportunities elsewhere. He said the United States is the leading destination for most migrants but that Spain is increasingly sought out by those fleeing hardships in Latin America, North Africa and other regions. "International migration is one of the great issues of this century. In an increasingly globalized world there is a growing desire by peoples who wish to move to new countries," Annan said in a keynote speech punctuated by applause. "It is a new era." ...http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2628006

A naked man was arrested on suspicion of carrying a concealed weapon after telling police he had a screwdriver in his buttocks. The man was lying on a tree stump masturbating beside a nature path near the El Cerrito Bay Area Rapid Transit station Thursday, police said. John Sheehan, 33, of Pittsburg was initially arrested on suspicion of indecent exposure. But when asked if he was carrying anything police should know about, Sheehan mentioned the tool, said El Cerrito Detective Cpl. Don Horgan. "You can't get much more concealed than that," Horgan said. Officers drew their weapons and firefighters were called to the scene, but Sheehan removed a 6-inch metal awl wrapped in black electrical tape without incident. Sheehan, who was paroled from state prison last week, was then booked into the county jail in Martinez on suspicion of parole violations, indecent exposure and one felony count of possessing a concealed weapon....http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2628035

Republican Bob Ney of Ohio resigned from the U.S. House of Representatives on Friday, three weeks after pleading guilty in the Jack Abramoff political corruption scandal. Ney submitted a letter of resignation, effective immediately, to House Speaker Dennis Hastert, an Illinois Republican who along with other lawmakers had urged him to step down immediately.Ney had said in August he would not seek re-election to a seventh two-year term in the November 7 elections.By staying on for a bit longer, he remained eligible to receive his paycheck and benefits, which drew widespread criticism.Ney was the first lawmaker convicted in the Abramoff influence-peddling scandal, and the fourth House Republican to step down under pressure in the 109th Congress....http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061104/pl_nm/crime_abramoff_ney_dc

The recent security breach at Los Alamos National Laboratory was very serious, with sensitive materials being taken out of the facility possibly including information on how to deactivate locks on nuclear weapons, officials tell CBS News. Officials say there is no evidence the information taken from Los Alamos was sold or transferred to anybody else, but there is no way to be sure right now. As CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson was the first to report, secret documents apparently taken from the lab were found during a drug raid at a Los Alamos-area home last month. The FBI was called in to investigate. Multiple sources now tell CBS News that the material includes sensitive weapons-design data. A federal official who has been briefed on the issue said at least three USB thumb-drives were involved. Those small storage drives contained 408 separate classified documents ranging in importance from Secret National Security Information (pertaining to intelligence) to ...http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/03/national/main2151021.shtml?source=RSSattr=U.S._2151021

Iraq canceled leave Fri for all military officers 2 days before an expected verdict & possible death sentence in the trial of Saddam Hussein. For the second time this week, a top Bush admin official huddled with the Iraqi prime minister. Many of Saddam's fellow Sunni Arabs, along with some Shiites & Kurds, are predicting a firestorm of violence if the court sentences the ex-president to death, as is widely expected. Bloodshed is already high, with police finding the bodies of 87 torture victims throughout the capital between 6 a.m. Thur & 6 p.m. Friday. But most Shiites, including Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, are likely to be enraged if he escapes the gallows. Al-Maliki declared last month he expected "this criminal tyrant will be executed," saying that would likely break the will of Saddam's followers in the insurgency. In a videotape Fri, Defense Minister Abdul-Qader al-Obeidi was heard issuing the order canceling all military leaves & ordering vacationing soldiers back to duty...http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/03/ap/world/mainD8L5T0N80.shtml